American Morning
Obama: U.S. 'not at war with Islam'
By Ed Hornick
(CNN) - President Obama spoke Thursday of the tensions between the United States and Muslims, saying "the sweeping change brought by modernity and globalization led many Muslims to view the West as hostile to the traditions of Islam."
- Full Transcript: Obama's speech in Cairo (PDF)
"Violent extremists have exploited these tensions in a small but potent minority of Muslims. The attacks of September 11, 2001, and the continued efforts of these extremists to engage in violence against civilians has led some in my country to view Islam as inevitably hostile," said Obama, delivering what the White House billed as a major speech to the Muslim world in Cairo, Egypt.
The president reiterated a point he made in an April speech in Turkey: "In Ankara, I made clear that America is not - and never will be - at war with Islam. We will, however, relentlessly confront violent extremists who pose a grave threat to our security.
"Because we reject the same thing that people of all faiths reject: the killing of innocent men, women and children."
Obama also said the U.S. does not want to keep its troops in Afghanistan. "Make no mistake: We do not want to keep our troops in Afghanistan. We seek no military bases there. It is agonizing for America to lose our young men and women. It is costly and politically difficult to continue this conflict.
"We would gladly bring every single one of our troops home if we could be confident that there were not violent extremists in Afghanistan and now Pakistan."
Obama hopes to start "a new chapter of engagement" between the United States and the Muslim world, speechwriter Ben Rhodes said Wednesday before the president's address.
This engagement would be based on mutual respect and interest, and Obama plans to speak "openly and candidly" about issues that have caused "tensions in the Muslim world," Rhodes said. "This can't be just [about] what we're against but what we're for."
Obama asked staff members to "cast a wide net" to gather a range of viewpoints, including those of Muslim-Americans, as he was preparing his Cairo comments, Rhodes said.
But just as the White House was laying out its vision, al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden purportedly issued another statement Wednesday, saying U.S. policy in Pakistan has generated "new seeds of hatred and revenge against America."
Arabic-language TV network Al-Jazeera aired segments of what it said was a "voice recording by bin Laden," which was believed to have been recorded weeks ago during an exodus of civilians because of fighting in northwestern Pakistan. Pakistani troops have been taking on militants in the Swat Valley.
The message also likened Obama's actions to those of past administrations.
Obama is proving that he is "walking the same road of his predecessors to build enmity against Muslims and increasing the number of fighters and establishing more lasting wars," the tape said.
"This basically means that Obama and his administration put new seeds of hatred and revenge against America. The number of these seeds is the same as the number of those victims and refugees in Swat and the tribal area in northern and southern Waziristan."
In his Thursday speech, Obama also touched on U.S. relations with Iran and the Israeli-Palestinian battle.
Addressing the nuclear tensions between United States and Iran, he said: "That is why I strongly reaffirmed America's commitment to seek a world in which no nations hold nuclear weapons. And any nation - including Iran - should have the right to access peaceful nuclear power if it complies with its responsibilities under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty."
On a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Obama said, "If we see this conflict only from one side or the other, then we will be blind to the truth. The only resolution is for the aspirations of both sides to be met through two states, where Israelis and Palestinians each live in peace and security."
What's on tap – Thursday, June 4, 2009
Happening now – President Obama speaks to the Muslim world.
An important and highly anticipated speech designed to repair relations with the Muslim world – The president has apparently been working right up to the wire. It's a big moment for his presidency and we have a big team with us to break it all down. CNN Senior Political Correspondent Candy Crowley is here with Chief International Correspondent Christiane Amanpour. We're also joined by a panel of foreign policy experts, Republican strategist Ed Rollins, Democratic strategist Lisa Caputo, Fawaz Gerges, Middle East scholar at Sarah Lawrence College and Robin Wright, author of "Dreams and Shadows: The Future of the Middle East." It's a big moment for the White House and we have a big team here with us to give you the best coverage possible.
Tell us your thoughts on President Obama's speech on Twitter @amFIX
We Listen!
Wednesday’s American Morning received comments surrounding the stem cell story, as viewers remarked that experimental treatments in the U.S. must be paid for by patients, and that the U.S. would be far more advanced on such research had Al Gore been in office.
- Carli: I just watched your report on stem cell treatments in foreign countries. The comment that really upset me was that these treatments are experimental and there should be no charge for them. Right here in the good old USA "experimental treatments" are used to treat patients every day and people have to pay for them. No health insurance company would pay for an "experimental" treatment" but that is how new treatments are developed. The insinuation that because they are asking for payments makes it a scam is upsetting. 25 years ago my father was diagnosed with cancer which was treatable by an "experimental treatment" at his expense. Currently, that treatment that was experimental is the standard of care for the type of cancer he had. He had to pay for the treatment that extended his life. So just because there is not enough data to say something works and there is a request for payment to use that treatment, does not mean it is a scam.
- Marlin: I do not know whether these treatments are authentic or not . I do know had Al Gore assumed the presidency in 2000 (as rightfully elected) this country would be at the forefront of stem cell research instead of people going to foreign countries to receive treatment. Had an administration been in power during the Clinton -Gore years I will assure you we would never had been where we were at in the computer and cyber world. This is the difference between a forward looking administration and one who was married to the religious right and therefore made little progress in stem cell research. The same can be said for all infrastructure progress. Tax cuts for the wealthy and borrow money from China to finance our wars. That was their policy for 8 years.
How do you feel about stem cell research? Do you know someone suffering from a debilitating disease who could benefit from experimental treatments?
Bulgari – A Roman Empire
Richard Burton once said of Elizabeth Taylor, “I taught Liz about beer, she taught me about Bulgari.”
When I was invited to attend the 125th anniversary celebration for the luxury house Bulgari, I immediately thought – what a great excuse to go to Rome! Then, I started looking into the rich history of the company and realized this could be a great story, too. Nothing like mixing a little business with a lot of pleasure!
Shooting the story was fun but grueling. Rome was in the middle of a heat wave – it was 90 degrees! So hot, we stopped shooting at one point so that Nicola Bulgari – Vice Chairman of the company and my escort for the day – could treat us to iced coffees – the Italian version is delicious!
After shooting a half-day in Rome, we drove two hours to the Bulgari’s home in Tuscany. Right out of a movie set. After a casual lunch in the garden, we sat down for the interview. Among the many stories Mr. Bulgari told me – Imelda Marcos used to call him in the middle of the night to have jewels delivered to her hotel room in New York. How’s that for obsession?
On trial in North Korea
You've seen their faces – the two American journalists captured and accused of spying in North Korea. Today, they are set to go on trial. The sister of one of the journalists, reporter Lisa Ling has pleaded for their release. CNN's Jason Carroll reports on what a trial in North Korea could mean.
Inside Dr. Gupta's operating room
By Danielle Dellorto, CNN Medical Producer
I wasn’t sure what to expect as I waited outside the employee parking lot of Grady Memorial Hospital Monday morning. My assignment for the day? Produce a story on Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s life outside of CNN – his life as a trauma neurosurgeon. For the past three years I’ve been producing stories for him – but this time he was my story.
He greeted our crew a little before 5 a.m. with a familiar smile and diet soda in hand. Wasting no time with chit-chat, he scurried into the hospital, quickly changed into scrubs, then was off to his “home away from home”, O.R. 14. He had three cases scheduled by the time we arrived – a brain surgery and two spinal fusions.
First up – clipping a ruptured brain aneurysm.
My heart raced as I stood on pins and needles watching a critical part of the operation, during which the patient had an interoperative brain bleed. “I always like to tell people we spend 99% of our preparation on the 1% of things that happen.” Sanjay’s team didn’t flinch. They knew she’d be losing a liter of blood in just seconds and to prevent disaster, they raced to stop the bleed. Mission accomplished. It was a scary 90 seconds for a bystander like myself watching it all go down, so what really struck me was how calm and focused his team was the entire time.
“When you have an aneurysm rupture like that and you are losing a liter of blood over several seconds, it makes any TV live shot you've ever done look not that scary. I know if I don’t get that thing stopped within a couple of minutes, the patient won’t survive,” he explained.
No doubt their neuro team is a well-oiled machine. It was especially fascinating to watch Dr. Gupta interact with his residents. “Many of my residents have never done cases like this so I get to show them for the first time how to do these procedures, which is pretty interesting for me and for them,” Gupta said. Between critical moments in the O.R. they chatted like comrades. Everything from rock concerts, to their love lives to real estate – joking around like old friends.
One thing that is “very important” during surgery: the music. I watched as they took turns flipping through the iPod. Dr. Gupta gave me his ultimate playlist for brain surgery: open with Gypsy Kings or Rise by Eddie Vedder and close the surgery with Coldplay’s Viva La Vida or Mr. Brightside. Solid picks, Doc!
The morning flew by fast. By 10am, Dr. Gupta and his team had already saved one life. By 10pm, that tally was up to three. Overall, it was incredibly exciting to not only see a whole other side of Sanjay on the job, but also see inside the human brain!
Want to see more in the weeks to come? Follow Sanjay on Twitter @sanjayguptacnn. He posts cool pics each week from the operating room!
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